Why humans will never colonize space

I guess I look at the moon as the groundwork to mars and the other interesting bodies of the solar system. I know Mars, Europa and Titan, to name a
few, beckon to us with unimaginable stories yet to be told I just feel that the moon is our doorway to the solar system.

Originally posted by iforget
I guess I look at the moon as the groundwork to mars and the other interesting bodies of the solar system. I know Mars, Europa and Titan, to name a
few, beckon to us with unimaginable stories yet to be told I just feel that the moon is our doorway to the solar system.

My personal belive is the moon is a space station and thats were we should be looking to..

There ain't no competition with space faring nations now, its called cooperation. Space exploration is probably the most unifying science in the
world now, spearheading the way to a one-world planetary race of shared knowledge. (for a change)

There ain't no competition with space faring nations now, its called cooperation. Space exploration is probably the most unifying science in the
world now, spearheading the way to a one-world planetary race of shared knowledge. (for a change)

and this is the reason we'll never get off this rock; coz we think in terms of money. but if the human race would just decide to build these things
perhaps as protection against asteroids and alien invaders with no regard to how much it cost and other financial aspects of the whole endeavor, then
maybe there's hope for us yet.

Condoms and birth control don't stop us even when we use them... space, bring it ooooooon!!!

On a more serious note: Does that mean everyone who goes into space becomes sterile? Because if these radiation particles can interact with a growing
fetus inside someones body, they definitely reach sperm then and eggs... therefore unless we develop some awesome kind of forcefield then we can't
procreate on any other planets unless we teleport there.

The data is obviously flawed. The Russians performed actual space experiments of cockroaches conceived in space, and observed they grew bigger,
stronger, and faster than their counterparts conceived on earth on the trip.

Originally posted by Illustronic
The data is obviously flawed. The Russians performed actual space experiments of cockroaches conceived in space, and observed they grew bigger,
stronger, and faster than their counterparts conceived on earth on the trip.

And a hundred years ago, they said humans would never colonize space because the sky was in the way.

We are an incredibly capable and resourceful species. We have continually proven we can accomplish anything if there is money or power to be gained.
Both of which are in no short supply when it comes to the colonization of space.

Radiation is a hazard for sure, but it's an obstacle, not a road block. We already have the understanding and technology to provide adequate
shielding from radiation. What we don't yet have, is a means by which protection against radiation can be efficiently deployed on the scale
necessary for human colonization of space. It's ok though, because we've got other issues to solve before it even becomes a problem. But nobody is
saying "colonization is impossible because we don't have sufficient propulsion technology".

Originally posted by dfrank39
Sex is not the only way to have children. The grunt work could be done in a lab. The raw materials collected on earth and protected in space. Sex
would be for psychological needs and enjoyment.

True -- but I wonder what complications may arise from a zero-G pregnancy. Human females are designed to gestate a child in gravity, and there may be
unknown complications arising from doing so without gravity.

I think for long-term survival in space (years + generations), we will not only need to develop a way to mitigate radiation, but we will also need
artificial gravity.

Lets not forget we are traveling through space as we speak. The Earth orbits the Sun the Sun orbits the Galactic Center and the Galaxy is going?
I'm hoping Galactic Disneyland where everyone will be happy and have a good time.

Another way to look at the problem of radiation exposure is that if we can not manufacture an artificial shield it may well be possible at some point
in the future to repair the damage that exposure would cause.

Mostly to me it seems that the only real problem we have is our own self destruction. If we can outgrow that then it seems likely the universe is
ours.

Originally posted by dfrank39
I heard that three feet of H2O will protect anyone or anything in space. Maybe someone could find it.

Yes enclosing the spaceship in 3 ft water will provide adequate protection from most radiation hazards,
but it has to be kept in liquid form in near zero kelvin of space and that too an enormous amount of water.
Not impossible in any means only an engineering hurdle.
The trick is to enclose a large submarine ( modified for space ) in 3 ft of water and get it to space with anti gravity tecnology.

NASA scientist and former astronaut Dr. Chang-Díaz's VASIMR propulsion system works with plasma and could generate a strong magnetic field around a
spacecraft, potentially remedying this situation, en route at least.

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